The Lettermen

It's kind of dark, but you can kind of see the Lettermen singing. The reason I took this photo is to send it to my friend Bill Rich, who owns RSL Theatrical. I think he should make a bid to build a proper stage for the Phenix City Amphitheatre. Not one that's made of plywood and cinder blocks.


Last night, some girlfriends (Janet Roddy, Jan Crawford, Cindy Mohney and Phoebe Caldwell) and I got together for dinner for my belated birthday party. It's my fault. I just couldn't find an evening last month for us to meet.

After a great dinner at the Cannon Brewpub, Janet, Cindy and I went across the river to the Phenix City Amphitheatre for the concert by Gary Puckett and the Lettermen. We missed Puckett's performance, but the Lettermen were fabulous.

They sang all their hits and more. They're really, really good.

Tony Butala, the only original Letterman, said he'd been performing for 48 years. I have no idea how old he is, but he had the energy of a much younger man.

One of the funniest things he said was during an audience participation portion of the concert. He invited people on stage to have their photos taken with them during "Up, Up and Away."

When two little kids came on stage, he said, "I bet you thought you were coming to see David Letterman."

At another point, he said there were a lot of children who were probably wondering who they were. "Think of us as the Back Street Boys of the 1960s."

Another great line: "We've performed in Columbus many times, but we've waited our whole careers to play Phenix City, Ala."

I bet you're sorry you missed the concert.

I'm glad I went, and so were Janet and Cindy,